love doesn't discriminate
by Nikolai Argyris
Summary: "I wish you'd never retire." He hears the man with ocean blue eyes say. A sigh comes from his lips, another dream. He'd like to say that it was just a product of his imagination, a fantasy- after all, it was common for authors to have wild imaginations. But.. it felt real. If he were a romantic, he would've gone as far as to describe the dreams as another set of memories.


_"I wish you'd never retire."_

 _He hears the man with ocean blue eyes say._

He wakes up to a room blanketed in darkness, the curtains blocking out sunlight.

He glances to the clock, 7:37 AM.

A sigh comes from his lips, another dream. He'd like to say that it was just a product of his imagination, a fantasy- after all, he was a writer, it was common for authors to have wild imaginations. But.. it felt _real._

The dreams had been with him ever since he was old enough to remember them. It was confusing, more so when he was younger. If he were a romantic, he would've gone as far as to describe the dreams as another set of memories.

He had always been a peculiar child, according to his father. When he'd been born, he had cried constantly. And while that wasn't unheard of, practically normal for newborns, his father told him that it was as though he had been grieving.

When he turned six, he was drawn to the ice. He had constantly pestered his father to let him go to the ice rink near their house when they had still lived in Japan. He remembered his first time skating, the comfort he felt when he step foot onto the ice.

His father was English while his mother was Japanese. And it was unusual that he had taken to Japanese with more ease than English when he was taught English first and raised by his father.

It was quite amusing, when he remembers the looks on his classmates faces when he had spoken in perfect Japanese, as he had taken his father's last name after his mother left. In fact, he had taken after his father's looks more. No wonder they had thought he was completely foreign, what with his name and appearance.

Whenever he hit a block while writing, he would write down his dreams. His editor saw the drafts and suggested he publish them. He was hesitant at first and decided to publish an edited version of them. It felt wrong, he said.

Those dreams felt private, only for him. It seemed wrong to tell the world.

Instead, he used those as his inspiration. A story about a person, suffocating in his own darkness until he meets a man who becomes his reason to live. He'd originally intended for it to be a story about friendship, until unexpectedly, its popularity shot to the roof. His story didn't contain any fantasies or supernatural elements which was why he was taken by surprise when people had loved it. It was only about the struggles people face in their lives.

It didn't take long for the public to realize the chemistry between the two main characters. And really, he'd seen it too. That's why, for the second book, he had teased his readers about a potential romance. Writing the relationship of the two characters.

The book he was writing right now was to be the final one in the series. He'd planned on ending it with the two characters kissing and admitting their love for each other- that, he can write. The rest of the story however..

He sighs once again, that's why he went on vacation. He hit another block and he needed more inspiration. How could someone like he, who's never been in a relationship before, write a realistic romantic relationship?

He closes the door and feels the winter breeze hit him.

He wanders the streets, marveling at the beauty and simplicity of it. This was one of the reasons he loved traveling. To be able to experience the country in its glory, simply by just walking and wandering, letting his feet carry him anywhere. He wanders for a bit and decides to stop by the cafe he's been frequenting ever since he came here three days ago.

He sits down on one of the tables near the window and bring out his laptop.

He's on his second cup of coffee and struggling to write the second chapter when he hears,

"Do you mind if I sit here?"

His head raises up and he finds himself staring at ocean blue eyes. "Ah- it's just, you always come here alone," The man says.

He mentally shakes his head, just because the man also has blue eyes- He shrugs, "I don't mind."

He sees the man smile, "Great! My name's Andrei. But call me Victor."

He tilts his head to the side, "Victor? Quite a huge jump from 'Andrei'."

He sees the man shrug, "I've always been fond of the name."

Awfully nice and cheery. What a wonderful combination.

"Altair, Theo Altair."

Andrei nods, "So, what brings you here?"

He blinks, "What do you mean?"

"Well, you always come to this cafe but you don't seem like a native."

He gives a shrug, "I'm on vacation."

Theo stops and continues, "Well- not really. I just needed a change of scenery."

He takes a sip of his coffee and hears Andrei say, "You always seem to drink black coffee."

He raises an eyebrow, "What's wrong with black coffee?"

Andrei, or Victor gives him a look, "It's so bitter!"

"I take it you're one of those people who drink coffee with whipped cream and an unnecessary amount of sugar."

Said man gasps and looks at him as though he said he hated chocolate, "There is nothing wrong with coffee that has whipped cream and," Victor makes quotation marks with his hands, "an unnecessary amount of sugar."

"Oh?" And he gives him a smirk.

He hears Victor harrumph, "Your lack of faith scares me."

"Faith? Faith in sugary drinks that are not worthy to be called coffee?"

Victor gives out a dramatic gasp, "You are not human."

Theo laughs.

He spends the morning with the strange- but not unwelcome man and leaves the cafe feeling strangely happy.

* * *

When Victor first saw the black haired man walk into the cafe, he was hit by so many emotions. Love, longing, and grief being a few of them.

When he was young, he remembers insisting that his name was Victor. His parents would go along with it, being accepting and loving. And he has a feeling that that name was related to his dreams. Perhaps it was his name in those.. 'dreams'?

He was young- extremely so, when the dreams first started. He would dream of a man with stunning hazel eyes with gold flecks in them. And every day, his curiosity flares. Who was he? Why does he dream about him?

And the years would pass by, he hasn't found him yet. And sometimes he would remember the emotions he would feel during those memories.

And yet, till this day, he doesn't know where the overwhelming grief came from.

So when the man walks into the cafe, his mind screams that this is him, this is him. The first time the man comes, Victor runs to the restroom. Breathing harshly because after all these years, he'd found him. Once he calmed down, he walks towards the table the man was sitting at, giddy and nervous until he realizes that he is nowhere to be found.

And Victor doesn't know what to do because he missed him- what if he never comes back, where-

He stalks back to his house, desperately trying to keep his tears at bay. He doesn't know why he feels this way.

 _Hazel brown eyes meet his own and he hears laughter._

 _The man turns and seems to be mesmerized by the streets-_

 _He hears him gasp, "It's snowing."_

 _"-ctor, it's snowing!"_

 _And the snow continues to fall, with the man standing and looking at him as though he'd given him the world._

He wakes up to his alarm.

He tosses to the side, sighing and he stands up. He's locked himself in his house for two days. And it seems so illogical, how could he be this upset over missing someone?

He's out the door and lets his feet carry him anywhere. It was still early and most of the shops aren't open yet. Lights off in almost every single house and the road peaceful.

He walks around a bit and finds himself in the cafe once again.

He orders some coffee and brings out his phone when he sees the man on the other side of the cafe.

He approaches him, "Do you mind if I sit here?"

The man raises his head and Victor finds himself seeing the same eyes he would see in his dreams. And he realizes how forward he was and quickly adds, "Ah- it's just, you always come here alone." Well, not that he would know. He'd only seen him once in the cafe. He agrees and Victor feels relief flood him. He decides to introduce himself, intent on continuing the conversation.

"Altair, Theo Altair."

And Victor feels conflicted. While he's glad that he finally has a name for the man, the name.. doesn't feel right.

Time passes by and Victor finds himself enjoying every second of it. Friendly banter and all.

Theo looks at his watch, "Oh, I didn't realize that it's almost 10. I would love to talk to you more but.."

Victor quickly stomps on the disappointment he feels, "It's alright," And he sees relief blossom in Theo's eyes. "We've got to talk again, Theo! You're great company."

Theo nods, "Well, see you then, Victor."

And this time, Victor comes home with a skip on his steps. He's already looking forward to talking to him again.


End file.
